'Fake' Pakistan Football Team Gets Deported From Japan With Warning; Check Details

Pakistan faced yet another embarrassment, and this time in Japan. According to reports, Japan issued a warning to the country for allegedly sending over a “fake" football team. According to News 18 report, Sources claim that the members of this fake team were carrying forged documents while pretending to be football players from a fictitious Sialkot team, which may have been an attempt at human trafficking.

They added that the Pakistani nationals were humiliated in Japan for allegedly trying to travel under false pretences of being athletes. Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) said a group of 22 people posed as a football team and flew from Sialkot airport to Japan. The Japanese authorities, however, found out that their documents were fake and, subsequently, deported them, it said.

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) identified Malik Waqas as the key suspect. Investigators said Waqas had registered a football club named ‘Golden Football Trial’ and trained the group to act like players and charged each member Rs 4 million to facilitate their travel. A further investigation in this matter is currently underway.

Pakistan's tiff with India on Cricket field

Pakistan are already invovled in a tiff with India outside the cricket field and the political tensions seemed to have spilled over the cricket field as well. Durign the recent Asia Cup 2025 mjatch no handshakes were exdchanged between players from both nations resulting in things getting more escalted between both nations.

Reports emerged that The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said that match referee Andy Pycroft of Zimbabwe requested both captains Suryakumar Yadav of India and Salman Ali Agha of Pakistan not to shake hands during the pre-game coin toss on September 14 (Sunday). The board even demanded removal of Pycroft from the tournament. The ICC however turned down the request.